In Chinese higher education in the visual arts, students often focus on improving technical skills, while the development of critical thinking receives less attention. This tendency limits the depth and originality of artistic work, and it can also affect students’ further study and career development. Against this background, this study examines the role and value of critical thinking in Chinese higher art education and explores how teachers and students understand and use critical thinking. The study used qualitative methods, including semi-structured interviews with teachers and students, classroom
observation, and discussion of artworks.
The findings show that critical thinking is seen as an important part of artistic thinking, and it can support originality and meaningful expression. However, although students recognise its importance, their opportunities to practise it are constrained by policy
pressures, traditional classroom routines, and assessment systems. Critical thinking in Chinese visual arts education is also shaped by cultural orientations. It often takes the form of internal reasoning and negotiated judgement rather than public confrontation, which contrasts with Western approaches that place more emphasis on open debate and explicit critique. On this basis, the study proposes a culturally adapted model of critical thinking for visual arts education. The model keeps the cognitive foundation
of Paul and Elder’s framework, while extending it through collective orientation, the integration of creativity and emotion, and the reconstruction and generation of meaning. It conceptualises critical thinking in art learning as a socially negotiated, emotionally embedded, and generative practice.
The study also offers practical suggestions for teaching, assessment reform, and teacher development. It provides a context-based framework for supporting critical thinking in higher visual arts education and offers reference points for future curriculum reform and teacher training in China.
| Date of Award | 13 Feb 2026 |
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| Original language | English |
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| Awarding Institution | - University Of Strathclyde
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| Sponsors | University of Strathclyde |
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| Supervisor | Kate Wall (Supervisor) & David Roxburgh (Supervisor) |
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